Greetings from The Aero Experience Team

Greetings!

The Aero Experience is a celebration of Midwest aviation and aerospace achievement. We invite you to join us as we explore the treasures of Midwest aviation through first-hand experiences. Our contributors take turns flying lead, and we are always looking for new destinations. Check in with The Aero Experience frequently to see where we will land today, and then go out and have your own aero experiences!

Blue skies,

Carmelo Turdo, Mark Nankivil and Fred Harl - The Aero Experience Team

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Air Associates of Kansas, a fixed-base operator located at Johnson County Executive Airport, provides a wide range of services to the Midwest aviation community. Flight crews find a comfortable place to prepare for their next flight while their aircraft are being fueled on the ramp. Student pilots train at the Air Associates of Kansas Cessna Pilot Center, while a wide range of customers utilize the aircraft rental, charter, and affiliated aircraft management services. Aircraft owners and operators also rely on the Air Associates of Kansas maintenance services, whose reputation for technical excellence and customer service is well-known in the Kansas City/Olathe area. TheAero Experience visited with Steve Mooney, Director of Maintenance, recently and toured the impressive Cessna Service Center facility.
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AAKS Director of Maintenance

Steve Mooney

The Air Associates of Kansas maintenance department consists of six full-time A&P mechanics, with 24/7 on-call service available. The number of customers varies at any given time, but the hangar was full when we visited this fall. Mooney's crews work on aircraft from the flight school, rental fleet, charter service and managed fleet as well as those owned by area businesses and individuals. A range of aircraft types were represented in the maintenance hangar, from a homebuilt RV-6 to a Bonanza and other popular Cessna and Piper models. Beech King Air turboprop and Cessna Citation Jet owners are also regular customers.

The Air Associates of Kansas maintenance staff is highly experienced, with Steve Mooney himself devoting over 30 years to his craft in the Kansas City/Olathe area. Mooney's staff provides consistently excellent service, and customers have responded by keeping his crews busy enough to prevent any layoffs even during the leaner months. And a good reputation is invaluable to continued success.

The Air Associates of Kansas maintenance department demonstrates outstanding customer service to aircraft owners as well as to other local aviation service providers.
"It’s a pretty small community when you look at aviation," Mooney said. "If you don’t know someone, you know someone who does. We
have a good relationship with other service centers.On occasion we swap out inventory or borrow
tools, especially items you only use once or twice a year.” He added, with all sincerity, "We do not try to take each other’s
customers.”

Outstanding customer service is the norm at the Air Associates of Kansas and Air Associates of Missouri locations. "We strive to provide the best possible customer service in all areas of our business," Air Associates President Tom Cargin told The Aero Experience during our visit. Aircraft owners and operators needing maintenance services at Johnson County Executive Airport seem satisfied with the results.

The Aero Experience appreciates the hospitality shown by the Air Associates of Kansas staff during our visit. Special thanks to Steve Mooney and Tom Cargin for taking time out for the interviews necessary to produce this feature article.

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Testimonials

Testimonials

"Air Associates of Missouri and Air Associates of Kansas are proud to sponsor The Aero Experience at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2013 - 2016." Air Associates

"Gateway Jets and I pass on a Sincere Thank You to Carmelo and The Aero Experience for some great company and outstanding coverage of our expansion and open house. The pictures look phenomenal and the 3 part series covers our operations and philosophy perfectly." Corey Tomczak, President of Gateway Jets

"Carmelo really has a talent of capturing cool pics. We are lucky to have him in our area!" Bob Hamilton, Pitts Special Competition Pilot